Viet Nam’s stock market capitalisation (excluding bond market) reached almost VND2.74 quadrillion (US$120.6 billion) until the end of September 2017, the Ministry of Finance reported.

The figure was equivalent of 60.8 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product, and represented an increase of 3.6 per cent over August. It was also the highest level since the establishment of the stock market.

Total trading value on the stock market in September alone declined 6.3 per cent from August, averaging VND14 trillion per session. However, total transaction value in the first nine months increased to nearly VND13.2 trillion per session, up 39 per cent over the average trading value of the whole 2016.

Bond trading reached VND8.65 trillion per session, up 34.4 per cent, while the trade of shares and fund certificates was valued at VND4.54 trillion per session, up 49 per cent.

Meanwhile, total capital mobilised from the stock market in the first nine months was estimated at VND202 trillion (some US$9 billion), Pham Hong Son, vice chairman of the State Securities Commission, said.

Of this figure, auctions of shares on the two national stock exchanges reached VND505.8 billion, issue of additional shares was worth VND33.5 billion and sale of Government bonds was valued at VND166 trillion.